Abella and the Lighthouse
by ThatWriterGuy12
Summary: On the shores of France, in a post-Voldemort world, a new batch of students arrive at school to become great witches or wizards. However, one question lingers among those who survived the war, 'how long can the peace last' Will be a series


The wind soaked shores carried with them an echo that drifted along the breath of the water and into the small cracks that formed the base of the lighthouse. Water was lapping at its feet and wearing away at the rocks which guarded the island for the past five thousand years, and would continue to do so for another thousand or so. Foam, white as snow, cold as freshly laid dirt on a grave, bubbled to the surface and painted the sand grey. Emanating from the lighthouse was a light that rotated hypnotically, drawing sailors in as they ventured too far out to sea. The beam poked through the lightly forming mist that surrounded the island, and threatened to engulf anyone who dared come across it. The island sat on the outstretched arm of France, surrounded by the Atlantic, deep and vast. Above the sky was darkened with clouds with the occasional break to show faint stars.

Sitting patiently in the lighthouse were two men, one guarding the light, the other tending to the meal for the evening. The man watching the light drew heavily on his pipe and blew the smoke slowly out of the corners of his mouth, his eyes were red with tiredness and he longed for just a moment of sleep. However, he had received word three nights ago that a ship carrying 176 new faces was set to dock any day now, as such, he and his partner had been manning the light in longer shifts that usually, making sure that it stayed as bright as possible. The man's name was Hector, and as he drew once again from his pipe he ceased to lean against the railing looking out upon creation and stood up straight. When fully stretched, Hector stood at a commanding six feet ten inches tall, giving him the nickname Red Wood in the Navy. On some of the longer nights he thought about his time out at sea, but that was many years ago, just looking at the lines on his face one could count the decades since he was discharged. Though if you were to ask him, he would put that, 'the sea never leaves you,' and so he remains as a protector of those who are lost. With white hair that splits into a bald spot on the top of his head, Hector tries to hide this fact by wearing his cover. Though he has since lost his military shape, having gained forty or so pounds over the years, his size remains intimidating.

Hector searched his pockets for a fresh wad of tobacco when he first heard the blare of the _SS_ _Apprentissage_. Leaning over the railing once more, Hector grabbed his pair of binoculars and strained to see the ship in the distance. Indeed, it was the ship that had been promised from three days ago. Hector threw oil onto the flame and began ringing the bell as loudly as he could, trying to navigate their way to the island. After slowing for a moment, the _Apprentissage_ turned course and made its way to the shoreline of Île de Ré.

From the ships perspective, very little of the island was visible through the mist and waves that were crashing against it. What stood out the most was the castle that silhouetted itself against the cloudy sky. Lights appeared to be on in every tower of the castle, it stretched for over three mile in every direction, including elevation. Looking at it from the sea or ground was awe inspiring, you could swear nothing so large could be built of stone. The new faces gathered around the deck of the _Apprentissage_ and stared at their destination, hushed whispers carried throughout the group, half of the stories true, the other half simply hadn't happened yet.

'I hear giants guard the entrance.'

'My brother said there are rooms where the floors are lava.'

'My Mom went here, and she said the newbies have to do some kind of test in order to fit in.'

'I read that if you misbehave, they string you up by your thumbs.'

All of their talking ceased as the ship docked and was greeted by Hector who held a lantern in one hand, and a walking stick guided his other. Hector watched as each of the new faces exited the ship and waited until everyone had gotten off before he approached the captain. The Captain was the last off the ship, and he was wearing a blue button up shirt with a white cover. Hector gave a grunt when he saw how young the boy was, 'looks like he just got done sucking from his mother's breast,' Hector grumbled as he and the Captain came together.

'Any problems?' Hector asked, primarily wondering whether any of the new faces had given the Captain any grief

'We ran into a little trouble as we were passing through the last leg of the Atlantic, there were a few sea beasts that we had to out run.' The Captain said, taking Hector's hand and shaking it firmly, which Hector noted was something, at least

'Fucking beasts, lost my best friend to a Squid once. Come round after this lot gets settled in and we'll have a drink. My mate is fixing dinner right now.'

'Sounds great, but we best get a move on, we're late already.'

'Aye.' Hector said, moving out of the way and handing over the lantern to the Captain

The walk to the castle was one that previous students had warned the new faces about. It took over an hour to walk from the shore to the edge of the grounds, and the majority of the walking was uphill. With the road being made out of dirt, it was especially difficult on wetter nights such as this as they were essentially walking through mud. If turning back was an option, there would be many who would, but pushing through this physical test was always seen as a way of sizing up those who were just arriving. Granted, all the new faces were only eleven years old and had just begun to harness their abilities, but they mostly came from a world where whatever they needed could be whipped up in a few magic words. So this punishing start was also a bit of character building.

When they finally reached the front door they first had to cross over a long drawbridge that hung above a moat that was several feet deep. Though very few knew this, below the water were also razor sharp spikes that would cut anyone who tried to swim through it. As the Captain reached the door the wind picked up even more, causing the lot of them to bundle themselves up in their black cloaks and black covers. The Captain knocked four times on the door in a diamond shape, then one final time right in the middle. Once that was done, there was a loud creaking noise, the sound of metal locks being undone, and the doors slowly swept open.

The new faces filed into the castle in silence, each one terrified of what was about to come, and what might be hiding around the next corner. In truth, the entrance hall is rather bland compared to the remainder of the castle. There is a large blue suede carpet that runs the length of the floor, which surprisingly resisted all of the mud and water on the shoes of the new faces. Along the stone walls and carpet were armored knights, a total of twenty, ten on each side with each of them holding a joust. There were two brass chandeliers that burned dozens of candles each, adjacent to the hanging lamps were sigils on either side of the school. There was a griffin with its wings drawn with a flame rising high behind it. Written below the griffin were the words passed down from one generation to the next, _Apprenez ce que vous pouvez, aidez qui vous doit_. In front of the new faces were three doors and two staircases. The first two doors were on either side and led to even more staircases. The steps in front of them though led to a second floor which only consisted of one door and two flames which were bright enough to illuminate the remainder of the hall. The Captain told the new faces to wait where they were as he exited through the door on the right side of the room. When he reemerged a few moments later, he was with a very stern looking man who was wearing a blue cloak with black trims, he was even older than Hector, perhaps eighty in his years. The man thanked the Captain and allowed him to retire to his wishes. The man, Professor Evan Bisset, was one of the more well respected professors at the school. He had been there for forty years and had taught Alchemy as well as Divination for the entire length of time. Prior to coming to the school, he had traveled all across Europe learning about new and different ways to mix chemicals and see into the future. When there was an uprising in his younger days, the followers of a Dark Lord asked him for his assistance. It is true that Professor Bisset knows that in order to have complete knowledge on a subject, you must study the light and the dark, but nonetheless, he went into hiding and rejected their offer. Shortly after the failed uprising he became a teacher and has done his best to balance the light and dark in his teachings. Because of the macabre nature of his classes, only sixth and seventh year students are allowed to take his classes, and that is if they have passed their previous courses with either A's or B's.

'Welcome,' Professor Bisset announced to the crowd of new faces, 'welcome, welcome to your home for the next nine months. Here you will learn how to harness your magical abilities, and use them in productive and instructive ways. By the end of your stay here at Eclaircissement you will have become the very best witch or wizard that this world has to offer. Now, behind that door before you is our main hall. Most days it is used for food and gathering of friends, but today you will be given a short test to see where in Eclaircissement you will be placed. Afterwards, one of the professors will lead you to the First Year's Wing, where you will find your things and a warm bed awaiting you.'

The crowd of new faces mumbled a 'thank you' as they walked past Professor Bisset and entered the main hall. Inside, there were ten long tables that spanned almost the complete length of the room. Resting on each of them were pencils and paper, the test packet for the evening. Along both sides of the room were two fireplaces that were currently lit, a welcome relief for those who were stiff ice cold from the journey to the castle. At the far end there were stained glass windows depicting famous people in French history. There was Joan of Arc, riding a horse into battle. Jean-Jacques Roussseau, speaking before a crowd of people, perhaps rallying them to start the French Revolution. Then there was Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, with both France and the United States flag from his day in the foreground being carried by a sea of soldiers on horseback. Below these memorials were two long tables that sat at an angle, followed by one ornate gold chair in the middle of the two, this is where the professors and Dean of the school sit. On this day however, there were only ten of the chair filled as there were professors assigned to each row of tables. Hanging directly above the golden chair was the schools sigil once more, only this time the sigil was three or four times as large as the previous ones. One of the professors got to their feet as the final new face entered the room, she had in her hand a book that contained all the names of the new faces and intended to call them out in alphabetical order, sorting them in the rows accordingly. This process took roughly ten minutes as all the new faces learned their counterparts names. When the final person took their spot, the same professor who had called the names summoned a sand clock which contained an hour worth of sand and said, 'when I turn this over, you may begin your test. I will alert you when there is thirty, fifteen and then ten minutes left. Afterwards, you are to put your pencils down and then you will be taken to your sleeping quarters.'

With a quick turn, the clock began feeding sand from the top portion to the bottom. The crowd of new faces began their placement test with enthusiasm, as well as palpable nervousness.

One of the new faces, Abella, sat in her row and struggled to get through most of the questions. She thought, 'how are we supposed to know half of this stuff?' She was relieved to see that some of the questions dealt with Transfiguration, which happened to be her favorite subject. The idea of being able to change yourself and hide away from others was something she longed to do. Of all the spells her parents tried to teach her, only the ones dealing with Transfiguration truly stuck. She was told by her Aunt that it's because of her emotions that they always turn out right. Anyone can turn a beetle into a shoe, but those who have the passion and the drive for it will remember to add the groves on the bottom or add the shoelaces.

Abella finally finished her test with five minutes left to go. She was positive she got most of the questions wrong, and assumed they would kick her out for how bad the grade was.

'Nonsense,' Azurine said to her as they began to file out of the main hall, 'if anything they'll put you in an easier classes. Which if you ask me, is the right way to go. Who cares about getting good grades, just get me through to college.'

As a group, the no longer new faces were led to their sleeping quarters where they all passed out rather quickly, some sleeping peacefully, while others dreaded the results of the placement test.


End file.
